The best budget linears right now are probably the Alpacas and their derivatives such as the Lilacs and Mauves. Although you better be on Discord and getting tip-offs from friends if you want the chance to buy any of them. They sell out instantly.
The reason they are good is that they are very smooth out-of-the-box. There is a light factory lube, which is pretty inoffensive, but it may also be the material contributing to the sliding-quality of the switch. The Alpacas take to lube and filming very well.
And I mean very well. Lubing transforms the Alpacas from a nice stock switch into an endgame linear [if you film them too, maybe]. I've seen and heard the typing tests, and lubed Alpacas sound deep and thocky, and are unbelieviably smooth.
The C3 Tangerine V2s are said to be perhaps better than the Alpacas. You might be able to mod them to a somewhat better quality than the Durock linears. Cause people lube them to use as endgame switches. I haven't tried them yet, but I will as soon as possible. They are said to be the best upscale linear.
If cost isn't an issue, the Gateron Inks are probably comparable to the Alpacas and other Durock switches for just a little more. Because the Inks apparently take well to lubing, too.
For tactiles, it's true that properly lubed Holy Pandas feel more "endgame" then typical Cherry tactiles.
The best stock clickies for most people are BOX Jades, and you can try variants such as the BOX Whites [it's a better MX Blue], Pinks, or Navies [heavy like a buckling-spring]. Also, Novelkeys Sherbets might be worth a try. You don't need to lube BOX clickies, and probably shouldn't.
Best silent? Silents aren't quite "there" yet, at least among tactiles. The quietest silent tactile is probably Aliaz, but it is barely tactile, like a Gateron Brown. And they don't benefit much, or at all from lubing. So if you want a lubed, light tactile silent switch, it may be cheaper to just lube Gateron Silent Browns.
The Zeal Zilent V2s are much, much more tactile. They are in the realm of Holy Panda tactility, except sharper and steeper. Lubed Zilent V2s are said to be very nice.
Then there are the OUTEMU Silent Skies, and you definitely have to lube them for best results. Maybe spring-swap, too. They are a medium tactility, supposedly like a light MX Clear.
Best silent linear? Out of the box, it may be one of the Zeal silent linears. If you're willing to lube and especially film them, the Silent Alpacas are good. They really need that filming though, because of wobble.
